Nose Job: Givenchy’s Wings Nose Ring

New York Times fashion critic Cathy Horyn thought they ‘looked like moustaches or, perhaps, a glaze of cocaine’. Madonna thought they were hot enough for her Girl Gone Wild music video, where beefy male model Rob Evans donned a pair while lying spreadeagled on the floor. I’m talking about Givenchy’s It accessory for Fall: Swarovski crystal-encrusted nose rings.

The jewellery is rooted in the collection’s underlying mythical masculine figure, the Minotaur; the gothic dichotomy of half-monster and half-man. However, the nose ring, which hangs from the nasal septum rather than the nostril, has many references. It harks back to ancient times when Mayan tribal warriors would insert large pieces of bone through their septums, intimidating their enemies with their savage appearance. With such an insinuation, one thing is clear: Givenchy’s tribe of warriors isn’t going down without a fight when the world ends.